The new president of the Southern Baptist Convention said Wednesday that the denomination won't relax its position on same-sex marriage and transgender identity, even as courts across the country strike down gay marriage bans and the group tries to bolster membership.

Southern Baptist Convention President-elect Ronnie Floyd, senior pastor of Cross Church in Northwest Arkansas, told The Associated Press that although America's attitude toward gay and transgendered individuals is rapidly changing, the convention does not intend to alter its position that gender identity cannot be different from biological sex and that homosexuality is immoral.

"We stand strong on what the Scripture says about marriage between a man and a woman. At the same time we do know that we have this issue facing our culture," Floyd said. "But due to the situation today, we must hold the word of God in one hand and the love of God in the other, and have compassion and love to bring people into the fellowship."

On Tuesday, the convention approved a resolution opposing efforts by governments to "validate transgender identity as morally praiseworthy" at its annual convention. The resolution and meeting come as the group attempts reverse declining membership and baptisms.

Floyd said the SBC's stance reflects the denomination's adherence to the Bible and will not be compromised. Earlier this month, a Southern California SBC church decided to stop condemning homosexuality as sinful and instead embraced a "third way." Floyd said Wednesday that in relaxing its views on gay members, the church and its pastor had "chosen to disassociate itself with the Southern Baptist Convention" and that the denomination "does not support or condone" such action.

The Southern Baptist Convention is the largest Protestant denomination in the nation, with 15.7 million members, according to a recent report by the denomination's publishing arm, Lifeway Christian Resources.

The Southern Baptist denomination has been in long decline ever since a haughty fundamentalist contingent stood up in the 1979 Southern Baptist Convention and declared they were taking over the convention in 10 years (about as militant as a group can get without actually coming to physical blows), arrogating unto themselves the "true" and "pure" interpretation of Scripture and therefore Christian doctrine. How is that for attitude and action that engenders warmth, fellowship and love? Kind of gives ya the "warm and fuzzies," doesn't it? Sadly, through mere myopic provincial rhetoric, ego trips (popularity contests, the kind of thing that appeals to not a few "preachers" who hope to make the "big time," get the "big church," be the next "Stanley," the next "Adrian," the next "Somebody," etc.), and systematic manipulation, this militant group succeeded. It all boils down to just plain old human pride... Shhh... No different than the world in the end... Illusive purity... You know... The mythology of "champions," "dragon slayers," etc. The kind of foundation upon which one wants to build a denomination, right? This hubris only sows the seeds of decline. Not destruction, though. The arrogant will always be among us, in various manifestations. Many have left the denomination because of the "in your face" arrogance (and shear ignorance to be honest), narrowness, and repeated "loving" condemnation of others different from themselves. The resolutions just keep coming... And the denomination just keeps making itself irrelevant... The onerous obsessive pursuit of purity and pretense of humility continue... A reasonable person would not even trust "the record book" for the various numbers leaders claim for the denomination... Gotta keep the machinery going.. So "cook" the books... Gotta make the numbers look as good as possible...

The Southern Baptists once pointed to some Scripture which they argued supported their view that African-Americans should not worship alongside white people. Somehow, that Scripture seems to be gone now, or not mentioned, or it has lost its previous meaning. God, or at least the god of Southern Baptists, has made peace with the African-American human beings, but not for a long while, and not without significant contretemps along the way. Now, Praise the Lord, African-Americans are welcome in virtually every Southern Baptist church, or at least the national convention takes that position. Will the same thing happen to the gays and lesbians that happened to the African-Americans, that is, will they someday be wholly welcome without complaint or chastisement at Southern Baptist churches? Those white Southern Baptists held out long and hard against the African-Americans, but in the end, they "threw in" with the liberals and, to my mind, with Jesus, to welcome the fellow humans with different skin color. Just how long can the Baptists hold out against the gays and lesbians? We'll see.

Leelah Alcom---Transgaender--------------------------This story has been in the news on CNN for 3 or 4 days but nary a word about it on Fox or this rag.Her Christian parents killed their child, because of religious beliefs. Her mother said GOD does not make mistakes, but what about severe birth defects? What would she say about that? These are the same type of folks as Michelle Bachman and her husband. Pray away the gay.* Leelah's suicide note, however, says she struggled for a long time to gain her parents' acceptance as a transgender teen."My mom started taking me to a therapist, but would only take me to christian therapists, (who were all very biased) so I never actually got the therapy I needed to cure me of my depression. I only got more christians telling me that I was selfish and wrong and that I should look to God for help."